Just Stay
by somuchanemoia
Summary: "I'm a-asking you to please not go to Yokozawa's." Masamune wanted to cry at the sound of his lover so worked up; so upset. He had always hated when Ritsu was this upset. His beautiful Ritsu always looked better with a smile on his face and his cheeks softened by his blushing. Set towards the end of episode 17.
1. Chapter 1

_Disclaimer: This is a work of fiction. None of these characters belong to me, sadly. I am just using them and parts of the plot of Sekai-ichi Hatsukoi to relay a story that I love. All characters and parts of the plot belong to Shungiku Nakamura._

 _ **Just Stay**_

 _ **Written by**_ _: SadieAnnabethMellark ( porkcutletbowltrash)_

 _ **Summary**_ _:_ "I'm a-asking you to please not go to Yokozawa's." Masamune wanted to cry at the sound of his lover so worked up; so upset. He had always hated when Ritsu was this upset. His beautiful Ritsu always looked better with a smile on his face and his cheeks softened by his blushing. Set towards the end of episode 17.

* * *

"Let go." Takano's voice was a low mumble as he stared at the door in front of him. He just needed to push through this and walk away. He needed to let Ritsu go for this moment. The pain was too much and it was slowly swallowing him. His beautiful, sweet Ritsu was promised to someone else – some girl who Takano had never met. He could tell she was rich by the way she was dressed in a long designer trench coat and carried an entirely leather designer bag with her. Her hair had obviously been styled in the soft ringlets by a professional stylist. She was there to impress; she was there to take his Ritsu away from him.

He needed Ritsu to let go before he did something that would fuel the fire of pain and anger that was burning inside of him. He didn't want his Ritsu to get caught in the cross fire of outrage and self-inflicted agony that he was feeling. He wanted Ritsu to be happy and safe in his apartment, his stomach full from dinner and soaking in a hot bath after a long days work. Granted, Masamune would definetly not have minded cooking a meal for ritsu and then crawling itno the bath with him before carrying him off to bed.

But the harsh reality was that he couldn't. Not now. Not in the middle of this.

Seeing her had reopened ten-year-old scars that were now making him bleed out. This was the girl who stole his Ritsu from him. She had taken the boy who had stalked Saga Masamune for years in the library, reading all of the books that he had read; the blushing adorable mess of a lover that couldn't even hold hands without being shy. She had taken his Oda. She brought back this jaded biter man, whom he still loved, but had come to hate him.

Ritsu's hand tightened softly on Takano's sleeve for a mere moment before he softly let go. He was torn between wanting Takano to stay and knowing that it was probably best for him to leave. _I don't want to dig myself any deeper into this,_ Ritsu told himself, _Objectively speaking it's for the best._ But those words were starting to mean nothing to him at this moment. He wanted Takano to understand. He wanted him to stay there with him; he didn't want him to run away to Yokozawa. He couldn't understand the feeling that was bubbling inside him. It was like a yearning need that nobody but Takano could fill. _If you let him leave, he will leave you alone._ , His mind chimed in, but his heart screamed louder, _Please don't leave me alone Saga. Please._

His arms were acting on their own as he grabbed onto Takano's arms from behind and he leaned his head on the form of Masamune's retreating back. Takano stopped in his tracks, still as a statue as Ritsu began to speak.

"That girl confessed her feelings to me a long time ago," His voice was filled with more emotion than he had expected, "but I rejected her." He wanted Takano to understand what he was saying. If Masamune would understand why maybe he would stay.

There was a soft pause before Masamune's deeper voice echoed in Ritsu's ears, "Why?"

Ritsu leant his cheek on the flat side of Takano's back. He was giving him a chance to explain. With a soft wheezy breath to calm himself, Ritsu said, "I told her that I was in love with someone else." His hands tightened on Masamune's sleeves. He had been in love – deeply in love with someone else and his heart was solely his. In a way, it had stayed that way for the past ten years.

Emotion was flowing through Ritsu's voice again and Masamune felt his eyes widen softly. He sounded more like the Oda he use to know. This was a peak at the real Ritsu being guarded by the fortress he had built to protect himself, "That's why…"

"Why what?" Takano was hoping he would hear those three words that he had been waiting to hear for the past ten years. He wanted to hear them from his Ritsu's mouth in soft clarity while sober and not in the middle of fucking around in bed.

"I'm a-asking you to please not go to Yokozawa's." Masamune wanted to cry at the sound of his lover so worked up; so upset. He had always hated when Ritsu was this upset. His beautiful Ritsu always looked better with a smile on his face and his cheeks softened by his blushing. It was almost as if he could hear the tears welling in Ritsu's eyes just by the sound of his voice. _Walk away,_ He told himself, _Go see Sorta and have a drink. You'll think straighter without him here._

There was a pregnant pause as Masamune's mind raced, his brain screaming at him to leave; to be logical for once. But the ringing of the pain in Ritsu's voice and the soft pressure as he leant against Takano's back made him shut that voice up rather quickly. He turned around and pulled Ritsu away from his back and pushed him up against the door. True to his predictions, Ritsu's face was flushed with emotions and tears welling in those gorgeous green orbs – the same green orbs that had haunted his dreams for the past ten years. _God_ , Masamune told himself, _It's my Ritsu. My Ritsu before she took him from me._

He wanted to kiss Ritsu so badly. He wanted to feel his warmth in his arms. He didn't care if there were no sexual acts to follow, he just wanted to feel his Oda. The flustery love of his life that he had been kept from for ten years. He leant down slowly, stooping to accommodate the height difference between him and his uke. He needed to feel Ritsu's thin lips against his own. He needed to know that this was really happening, this wasn't a dream that his sick unconscious had formulated like it had in the past.

Ritsu watched Takano's face in soft wonderment as their faces got closer and closer together. His eyes met the sharp golden brown ones that he had remembered loving since the first time he had seen Saga Masamune. He could feel the soft brush of Takano's hair against his own and feel the soft air flowing from Takano's mouth as he breathed. He was already lost in the soft heat that they were sharing by being close. It was enthralling and was all encompassing.

Their lips connected in a gentle kiss. This was unlike the ones they had shared together recently and it felt more amazing than those they had shared in the past. There was no hunger in this kiss, no sexual endeavor or sexual frustration trying to be reined in. There wasn't even a hint of resistance from either side.

This kiss was pure and innocent, filled with longing and love.

It was the first true kiss two lovers had shared in ten years.

Masamune reached for Ritsu's hand and grasped it in his own. This was real – entirely real and he wanted to feel more of Ritsu on him. He clasped his hand in Ritsu's own and gave it a gentle squeeze, feeling happy when that gentle squeeze was returned. He smiled as he pulled away from Ritsu's lips for only a moment and then returned to them once more. He would happily lose himself in Ritsu's lips for the rest of his life; they were warm, soft and real. All the things that Masamune had been deprived of in the past thirteen years.

Ritsu's mind was spinning as he squeezed Takano's hand once more. He didn't know what this feeling inside him was, but he hadn't felt this since the day almost eleven years ago when Saga Masamune had pulled him into his bedroom and had started nosing at his hair. It had been those soft touches that had calmed teenage Ritsu enough to allow Saga to do more than just caress his naked body.

Ritsu softly pulled his hand away from Masamune's and pulled away from the kiss to look up at him as he wrapped his arms around his lover's neck. He knew that this was almost too good to be true. He was waiting for the other foot to drop; for Takano to smirk at him in his very Takano-ish way and then leave him there.

"Don't go. Please." He whispered as he played with the soft strands of hair at the base of his boss' neck. Tears were threating to spill from his eyes, "Please, Takano."

Takano smiled at him softly and kissed each of his eyelids. Here it was. This was the moment when Takano would laugh at him and leave him. However, to his surprise, Takano pulled him closer and laid his head on top of his unruly brown locks.

"I'm not going anywhere until 11 a.m. tomorrow when we have to go to work." He mumbled softly as he nosed at Ritsu's hair. He heard Ritsu's softly gasp of surprise and felt Ritsu's arms tighten around him. He could easily get used to the feeling of Ritsu being clingy to him once more. He missed the days when his Oda would stay close to his side when they were out an about, not really touching him, but staying close by his side. Granted, he would have preferred if Ritsu would've let them hold hands back then, but just being was fine for him at the time. Now, however, Masamune, would be sure to just press on and slip his hand into Ritsu's every chance he got.

Ritsu clung to his lover and blushed deeply but stayed wrapped in Takano's arms. Tears were starting to roll down his cheeks in soft rivers. His Saga had listened and he had understood what he was trying to say. Masamune wasn't going to leave him tonight – he wouldn't be running off to Yokozawa. Ritsu sighed contentedly and shut his eyes are tears continued to roll down his cheeks.

"What's wrong, Onodera?" Masamune's soft tone was muffled slightly by Ritsu's hair as he spoke.

With a sniffle, Ritsu shook his head, "Nothing."

Masamune purred softly and smiled down at his oblivious lover before guiding them further into his apartment. He didn't want to push when Ritsu was finally letting him in, even if it was just for the moment. He wouldn't mind cooking dinner for both of them and then possibly drawing them a bath, before curling up in bed with Ritsu. That definitely did sound lovely to the seme.

Shifting Ritsu into leaning into his side, Takano guided them into the kitchen a shoulder lazing across Ritsu's shoulders.

"How does Tofu Miso Soup sound for dinner?" Takano mumbled softly as laid his cheek against Ritsu's hair, "Or I could reheat some leftover seared mackerel from last night if you want some fish." Ritsu buried his head deeper into Takano's side and shook his head.

"If you'd like I could run down to the convenience store just around the corner and pick up some sushi," Masamune suggested.

"I-I'm not really hungry," Ritsu mumbled from where his face was hidden in Masamune's jacket.

Masamune gave a soft frown but started guiding them both towards the bedroom. Maybe a bath would help Ritsu relax a little and get him to let Masamune in more, "Maybe latter then. How about a bath then? If you want, I even have some booze if you'd like a drink." He was almost hoping Ritsu would say no to alcohol, honestly. He would rather enjoy tonight with shy and sober Ritsu than the loud mouth hammered Ritsu. But, if a drink got his lover to unwind a bit, Masamune would take any Ritsu over no Ritsu any day.

As if the heavens had heard him, Ritsu shook his head, "Don't want to have sex right now."

Masamune looked down at his lovers and brushed his fingers lightly through Ritsu's hair, "No love making tonight, my love. Do you just want to lay down for a bit?"

Ritsu nodded softly, "But, I don't want you to go to Yokozawa's."

Masamune pulled his anxious boy closer to him, "No need to jump to conclusions. I'll stay right there with you. I promised you I wouldn't go anywhere until tomorrow morning, didn't I?"

Ritsu nodded and let out a soft sigh. Takano had promised him that, but his mind was still toying with him. _You should leave! You should leave him! He's using you!_ his mind would tell him, but he just couldn't let go of Takano's waist. He needed him. It was like a primal instinct that he couldn't ignore. He stayed locked to Masamune's side as he was guided through the apartment and into Takano's room.

This was the first time he had been in here that he was stone cold sober and Ritsu could see the little hints that Takano had left impressed in the room. The cream walls were bare and the soft sandy carpet was the same carpet in Ritsu's apartment, but the sheets and bedspread were a soft spring green and a picture of Sorta sat in a frame on the night stand. Everything was pristine in Takano's very own way. But in the corner sat three huge bookshelves overflowing with books of all different genres. At first glance, he could pick out some that he too had read, some of which he liked, while others he didn't. He noticed some of the manga that Ritsu himself had edited a few months back. Oh, how Ritsu would love to get his hands on some of the hidden treasures of undiscovered literature Takano had hidden in his room.

The window above Takano's bed had the curtains drawn back and the window cracked slightly. Ritsu guessed that he was more or less awoken by sunlight shinning down on him and was lulled to sleep by the soft glow of moonlight and the sounds of the traffic. That seemed just like something Ritsu could picture his Saga loving.

Masamune pushed sat them both down on the foot of the bed, rubbing a soothing caress along Ritsu's shoulder as he leaned his head against Ritsu's for a moment, before pulling away from his lover.

Ritsu looked up at him with sad green eyes, but Masamune reassured him with a soft touch to the head, "I'm just going to get comfortable. You should too. You'll be warm through the night if you keep your jacket on. I have some sweat pants if you want to change out of your jeans." Ritsu looked up at him and nodded softly.

"Please." Masamune smiled and went over to the chest of drawers sitting along the wall beside the bedroom door, sliding his arms from his jacket as he did so, tossing it to sit onto of the dresser. He toed out of his socks as he reached down and grabbed two pairs of sweat pants from the bottom drawer, tossing a pair to a silent Ritsu with a look of adoration. Ritsu's cheeks hadn't lost the soft red tint of his blush and his green eyes were still slightly puffy from his anxious crying. Still, Onodera Ritsu, Takano had to admit, was as beautiful and radiant as ever.

Ritsu caught the pair of sweat pants in his arms and set them to the side, before pulling his arms from the sleeves of his jacket slowly. He didn't like Takano not being right next to him in this moment. He wanted to feel Takano's warmth and feel his gentle touches and be surrounded by the one thing he had deprived himself of for the past decade. Rationality be damned. He set his coat on his other side on the bed and drifted a hand down to his belt, his cheeks going redder. As if sensing the problem, Masamune came over and pecked Ritsu on the forehead, before mumbling something about checking that the front door was locked before exiting the room. Ritsu blushed deeper, but stood and quickly changed into the sweatpants that Takano had allowed him to borrow before crawling up the bed and curling up.

Masamune came back into the room only a couple minutes later and smiled at the sight of his lover curled up in a ball on his side of the bed. His clothes were huge on Ritsu – his feet were tangled in the long length of the pants and the waist being a little too large around – but it was adorable none the less. Ritsu looked stunning in Takano's clothes and he wouldn't mind seeing his lover donned in even more items of his clothing if it meant that he got to look so adorable. Plus, it showed that Ritsu was his and only his. His cute lover didn't belong to that girl that stole him from Masamune ten years ago.

With a content sigh, Takano crawled onto the bed and hovered himself over his lover. Ritsu turned slightly to look up at him with those perfect green eyes and he leant closer, "Better?" Ritsu nodded and rolled onto his back, wrapping his arms around Takano, "Good. I want you to be able to relax some, focus on us right now."

Ritsu nodded softly and pulled Masamune closer, wanting to feel the warmth and safety of his arms around him. With a hum of content, Takano wrapped his arms around Ritsu, even though the position was a little awkward, and curled his fingers in Ritsu's soft downy hair. It was comfortable and warm, a way to relax and unwind after the squabble they had had only half an hour ago.

"You know," Masamune whispered softly in Ritsu's ear as they snuggled together, "I don't know what you've been doing these past ten years. So tell me everything." He knew that asking Ritsu about this would possibly bring up some stress, but he was dying to know. He wanted to know everything about the ten years that his Ritsu had been taken away from him. He wanted to be able to tell Ritsu about his own crazy adventures through college. He wanted to hear if Ritsu had really fallen in love with someone else, even though he knew it would be the death of him.

Ritsu clung tighter to his lover, but Takano pulled away just enough to look into those grass green eyes and continued, "I don't want anything to be hidden between us. I want to know everything about you." Ritsu's face was in a set state of nervousness, eyes wide and mouth slightly parted. He looked up into the swirling golden brown eyes that had captured his heart thirteen years ago, the same ones that he had tried to forget over the past decade, but now they were set on him and only him.

Ritsu bit his lip softly as he thought, _Usually, he just abuses everyone. Normally he's so sarcastic. But now, he's holding me as if I were something precious._ His mind was creeping in on him again, putting those doubts once more in his was a side of Masamune that he hadn't seen in a long, long time. There wasn't malice or bite in those amber eyes, not a trace of sarcasm, but they were simply filled with curiosity and timid adoration. _I won't tell him,_ he told himself, _I won't tell him that in my whole life, nobody's ever made my heart race like this._ His throat was closing once more with emotion as more tears spilled from his eyes.

Masamune brought a hand up and softly brushed the streams of tears away, "Ritsu. It's okay."

Ritsu swallowed hard and nodded as he tried to push his doubts onto a back burner in his brain, "I-I went to Europe. I finished high school at a really prominent school," He hiccupped once, "The other students weren't very nice and I didn't really like it there, but my father insisted that I attend that particular school since I studied abroad." His eyes went hazy as he started to recall his time in the heart of Windsor, England. It was in the top ten European boarding schools, according to his research before attending, some of its prominent alumni including both Prince William and Prince Harry of the British royal family. He remembered pulling up in front of the school gates, it's gleaming lawns and perfect marble buildings looking very intimidating to him, instead of comforting. The rooms had been rather nice and large, each with a shower and two walk in closets for both residents of the room. His roommate had been a Brit himself and was alright. And while the school itself hadn't turned out half bad, he remembered those months of lying in bed at night, wishing more than ever that Saga-senpai was there to hold him till he fell asleep. He would sob himself to the point of exhaustion over the fact that Saga hadn't returned his love. He remembered the hundreds of letters he wrote to his senpai but slid into the shred pile in the reception office instead of into the out-going post.

Ritsu closed his eyes and tried to push those memories back at bay. He didn't want to relieve those months of depression that he had suffered after the loss of his lover.

He took a deep breath, his eyes still closed to block out the hazel eyes of his lover that would surely kick start even more painful memories of the past, "When I graduated, I went to a public university in London. I double majored in English Studies and in Japanese Literature." He didn't really want to talk about this. He just wanted Masamune to hold him in his arms and wrap him up in the warmth of his touches, even though his brain was screaming at him to stop. He didn't need to talk, he just needed the strength that Takano oozed to hold him together; to stop the on setting anxiety.

Masamune hummed and stroked his thumb softly against Ritsu's scalp. Ritsu knew that Takano was trying to calm him, to keep him from being worried, but it wasn't enough. He wanted to feel surrounded by his lover in a more intimate way than sex or words ever could. He wanted to be enveloped in Takano's clean scent and feel the warmth of his embrace warm him from the inside out.

"Is it beautiful?" Takano's rumble was so soft Ritsu wouldn't have heard it, if it weren't for Takano laying on top of him, "Europe, I mean."

Ritsu swallowed and sighed, "I suppose. The streets of London are just as busy as those in Tokyo. The grass is green and the London showers are beautiful." London was beautiful, but it wasn't where he had wanted to be. He had longed to come home to Japan, to return to his previous school, to beg Saga to take him back, "They don't have any cherry blossoms though."

Masamune felt a soft smile grace his lips when he heard the slight pout in Ritsu's voice at the mention of cherry blossoms. Years ago, he had watched Ritsu stare out the window in silent awe as the petals fell from the cherry blossom trees in the spring. He had looked so adorable with his big green eyes wide, almost like he was trying to take as much of it in as possible. He had learned that Ritsu loved the spring, even if he never explicitly said it.

He too had come to love the spring. The soft grass had been a constant reminder of his Ritsu's eyes.

"That's a shame." He couldn't help but smile to himself, "They're missing out."

Ritsu's watery chuckle was like music to Takano's ears, "Yeah. They are." He softly nosed Ritsu's hair and rolled off of Ritsu to pull him closer to his chest. He wanted his lover to be as comfortable as possible. He could tell that talking about his time in Europe was a touchy subject, so he decided to stay away from that topic of discussion. Ritsu seemed to find even more comfort in his chest as he buried his face into the soft material of his t-shirt.

He pulled his lover closer and took in the sweet smell of Ritsu. He needed to have some sense of comfort as he started rambling, "I was so depressed when you left Ritsu. I shut myself in my room for the rest of senior year. I kept Sorta with me and I barely graduated and I passed my entrance exams. My mother decided that she would ship me off to her alma mater to study. She told me, "Maybe the distance away from her and her new husband would do me good"." He know understood what Ritsu was feeling. He didn't really want to talk about his years in college so much now either, "I stumbled through my first semester. I drank a lot. Smoked a lot."

Ritsu hiccupped, "You still smoke a lot."

Takano felt a half smile grace his lips, "Yeah. I suppose I do. I tried to forget about you and move on, but I never could. No matter who I slept with, they all looked like you, but they weren't you. I knew that you were the only one I would ever truly love during those months. Yokozawa tried to get me to move on, but instead, I focused on you. I focused on becoming perfect enough for you.

"I threw myself into my schooling, graduated at the top of my class and found a job within a few months as an editor for a small town local paper a few hours from here. I climbed the ladder and when I had enough experience, I jumped at the chance to apply to Onodera Publishing. I had hoped that I would see you, but they decided to hire someone else for the editor. Maruwaka was hiring and they saw something in me, I suppose. Next thing I knew, I had been put in charge of one of the shittiest magazines in the city. I wanted to quit, but then I found I enjoyed working there. It was a bonus when this beautiful brown haired man with these big green eyes came into the office one day. I'm almost living my dream."

Ritsu was silent, but that was alright. He wanted to let it out to Ritsu, he wanted him to know what had happened since then even if it wasn't the most pleasant thing to relive. He pulled his love closer and felt himself ease slightly as Ritsu's hand grasped softly onto the soft cotton of his shirt. He had remembered teenage Oda doing the same thing ten years ago as they laid on his bed, wrapped in each-others' arms. They hadn't planned on having sex that night, but it didn't matter because the spontaneous-ness of their first time had made it even more perfect.

"Why almost?" Ritsu whispered.

"Because I don't have you." Takano squeezes his lover tightly in his arms and sighed softly into the soft tendrils of brown hair that tickled his nose, "I love you, Ritsu."

They laid together wrapped up in each-others' arms as the sounds of the street outside their apartment build quieted even more as traffic died down. The silence wasn't awkward or tense for once, but it was soft and comforting. They didn't need any more words shared as they huddled in each other's arms, not wanting to let go of each other until the sun rose high in the sky.

 **(A/N:** I've been working on this piece for about three weeks now and I am so excited to finally post it. So, this is my first published fic of Sekai-ichi Hatsukoi, so I hope you all enjoy this. I may post more stuff in this fandom in the next few weeks/months, but I'm not really sure yet. I really enjoyed writing this though, so the odds are looking up right now. What did you all think? Don't forget to R&R, lovelies. –S.A.M.)


	2. Chapter 2

**Just Stay**

 **Written by** : SadieAnnabethMellark ( porkcutletbowltrash)

* * *

Takano had awoken to a sight he hadn't thought he would see in the morning. He pulled the small body of his lover closer and nuzzled his nose into the soft brown hair. Ritsu had stayed the night in his apartment with him, curled up around him like a lonely kitten; he couldn't have felt happier. Kitten, Masamune thought, was a fitting word for his Ritsu. Soft and cuddly when he desired love and feisty and skittish when he didn't want to be touched. Not to mention, Ritsu was rather adorable whether he was clingy or standoffish.

His lover was still snoozing softly in Takano's arms, little puffs of warm air coming from his mouth and blowing against Masamune's chest. To think that just last night, his lover had been anxious and clingy seemed so odd to think of now as Ritsu rested peacefully in his arms. His face is exactly like it was a decade ago when he rested against Masamune's chest after their first time. He had stayed awake for a while after that too and had watched the brunette sleep soundly, finally relaxed for the first time in forever since he had met him. Takano, at the time, had been a little in awe of how calm his lover was when he wasn't always on edge and this time was no different a decade later. For once, Ritsu wasn't either having a mental breakdown or biting his head off and the dark haired man couldn't help but be thankful.

Moments like these were rather precious in their own unique and special way.

Masamune blinked sleepily and gave a soft yawn as he took in the gentle smell of his lover's hair; it was the same spring-like scent of laundry soap and vanilla that Oda had years ago. The same scent that he had longed to smell every night for the past ten years away from the love of his life. He didn't even care that in this moment that Ritsu was sleeping on his preferred side of the bed; Ritsu could have the left side if it meant that he would sleep in Takano's arms. Lifting his head just enough to peer at the alarm clock on the side table, he gave a soft sigh; 9:47 am. He'd have to start getting ready for work soon and that meant he'd have to awaken his sleeping Ritsu, something he wasn't very keen on doing. Maybe he could come in late; he was the head editor after all, but then again their deadline was in a week and they still needed to go through multiple manuscripts before they applied screen tone. Plus, he and Ritsu had that planning meeting tomorrow and he knew Ritsu needed time to finish his plan for the new book. Even if his manuscript wasn't up to par, Takano would fight for his lover until the end, but it'd be helpful if Ritsu was definitely prepared.

That was something that Takano had grown to love and hate about the brunette. He had seen the way Ritsu could do anything if he had put his mind to it; the boy had always been incredibly stubborn in his ways. Over time, he had noticed, Ritsu's will and determination had grown with him. He had done the impossible, flew to Hokkaido, finished a manuscript, flew back to Tokoyo and made handed the manuscript into the printers within a matter of seven hours. Granted, as soon as Onodera had said that he was going to fly all the way to Hokkaido for this manuscript, Takano had known the outcome that was sure to follow, but still, Ritsu's will had been rather impressive still.

The flip side of this trait, however, had irritated Masamune to no end. Ritsu was incredibly bright and talented, but yet he wouldn't ask for help. He wouldn't ask questions. He wouldn't let Takano help and teach him. The amount of times Takano had wanted to strangle his lover over this had been far too many times for Takano's comfort. Oh, Ritsu, he'd always think while watching his lover frantically type on the computer, if you'd only let me help you, you wouldn't be stressed. Your upset when you're stressed and I'm worried when your upset. Eventually, Ritsu would either cave and ask for help or he'd figure it out, but it had made Ritsu even more skittish around him afterward. Ritsu wouldn't allow him to help ease the stress either by helping or by comforting; it was practically torture.

He placed a soft kiss on top of his lover's unruly bed head and caressed Ritsu's soft cheek gently. He really didn't want to get out of bed, but it if he got up now, he'd be able to make breakfast for Ritsu and himself. He wasn't oblivious to the fact that Ritsu seemed to solely live off energy drinks and junk food; another irritating trait that Takano longed to remedy. He truly did care for the brunette's health and with his current nutrition and the stressful schedule of the Emerald, he had been worried about the man being overly tired and possibly becoming ill. His mind made up, Masamune placed a gentle kiss once more to his lover's hair and unraveled himself from Ritsu's arms.

o.O.o

He listened to the soft gurgling of the TV from the living room as he cracked an egg onto the side of the pan. The newscaster was rambling on about some sort of traffic jam on the other side of town, but the voice (while rather dreary) was a nice way to ease the silence. He had made sure to keep the volume low so he wouldn't disturb Ritsu and had set to work on making breakfast. He remembered that Ritsu had been extremely interested in Western-style food when he was a teenager, but now that he had studied abroad, Takano wasn't entirely sure if he was interested still, let alone liked it. However, he had decided to fry some eggs and bacon along with simple toast. It wasn't the fanciest breakfast ever, but it was the best that he had on hand so he hoped Ritsu didn't mind.

The rich scent of coffee filled the air and Masamune let out a soft sigh of contentment. Canned coffee was alright, but fresh coffee was a whole new level of perfection. He had always wished that intern at the time hadn't broken the coffee machine in the office. It had been a few months after Takano had taken the reins of the shojo manga department when Isaka had brought in a new intern to study the editorial staff and to try to make cycles less stressful. The kid had been barely out of high school, 18 or 19 at the most. The kid had a type of hunger that, while rather impressive, seemed to get him into more difficult situations than it should have. One of those incidents had ended in a broken coffee pot, multiple almost complete manuscripts and Kisa looking like he was going to curl up into the fetal position and cry. Since then, it had been a strict rule that their office wasn't allowed an actual coffee pot.

With a sigh, Masamune poured himself a cup of the rich liquid before he slid the sunny side up eggs onto the plate next to the toast and bacon. For once, he knew that Onodera would have a balanced breakfast before going to work and then looking dead on his feet after a couple hours at his desk. With the coffee mug to his lips, he took a long sip of the warm rich liquid, in its purest and blackest form. It was homey and spread warmth through his body; like he was being wrapped up in a blanket in front of a warm fire just by taking a sip.

"I should wake Ritsu…" he mumbled to himself, before giving a soft frown. If it weren't for the deadlines, he would happily call them both in sick for the day…or possibly the week if he could manage to keep Ritsu right by his side for that long. He set his coffee down and grabbed another glass from the cupboard, pouring a warm cup for Ritsu. Coffee had always managed to lure Oda out of the covers when they would wake up beside each other and Ritsu was extremely blushy, maybe this would have the same effect on Older Ritsu. However, he had been hoping that coffee wasn't what Ritsu needed.

He was hoping that Ritsu would peek one of his beautiful green eyes open and mumble for him to come back to bed. He smiled to himself at the thought.

Shuffling off to his room, a warm cup of coffee with milk and two sugar cubes like Ritsu liked, he opened the door to his room where Ritsu was sleeping to find that his green-eyed lover was awake already. Sitting on the floor in front of the huge bookshelves that Masamune had stuffed full with books, Ritsu's eyes were excitedly scanning the titles. He watched as Ritsu picked a book from the bottom shelf and brought it in front of his face, pressing the pages to his face and sighing in content at the smell of the paper. Just like Oda, Takano thought as he slid into the room and set the mugs of coffee down on the side table. He sat behind his lover and pulled the smaller man into his lap. Ritsu let out a squeak of surprise and tensed up, but Takano felt him relax when he nosed at Ritsu's neck softly.  
"It's just me."  
"Oh, Takano-san," Ritsu gave an embarrassed chuckle as he struggled slightly in the seme's arms.  
Takano placed a soft kiss under Ritsu's ear and pulled him closer, "You found a book you wanna borrow?" He couldn't see the blush on his lover's cheeks, but he could feel it.  
"Uhm, uh, I didn't mean to pry or –" Takano pulled the book from Ritsu's fingers and gazed at the title.  
"A Hundred Years of Solitude. Spanish novel. Not bad." Takano hummed and flipped through the pages softly as he looked at the words over Ritsu's shoulder, "There's even a scene where this guy is trying to take a peek at this woman in the bathtub by looking in through the window into her bathroom. He ends up falling to his death after she tells him to be careful."  
Takano couldn't help but coo to himself at Ritsu's bright cheeks, "That's…dark…"  
"Very, but it was good. If you want, you can write your name undermine on the inside cover…" Masamune couldn't help the light teasing, but he really wouldn't mind seeing Ritsu's small slanted handwriting under his own curly scrawl.

He laid his head on Ritsu's shoulder and peered over to look at the books Ritsu had been eyeing as he gave a small Eskimo kiss to his lover's neck. Some were newer works, some were second-hand classics, others were rare finds that he had ordered online and had shipped to Japan. It had taken a little more than a little effort to learn English past the basic level, but the words he read after in those rare stories had been worth every irritating minute of studying and practicing. Ritsu is probably really good at English from studying in Europe for all those years, he thought as he smiled wider. He wouldn't mind if Ritsu taught him English. Maybe they would sit close together on the couch with some warm tea (or in his case coffee) and Ritsu would teach him the correct pronunciation of the western terms. Maybe Ritsu would smile softly and correct him every time he messed up; Ritsu might even possibly kiss him when he got too frustrated.  
He was broken out of his thoughts when Ritsu gave a soft sigh, "We have work…"  
Takano himself frowned slightly. Work was sounding less and less appealing by the minute.  
"Deadline is in a week and a half," He mumbled half-heartedly against the soft warm skin of his lover's neck, "Plus, you have that report that is due by tomorrow morning."  
"HA?!" Ritsu cried as he tensed in the seme's arms, "The meeting isn't until Friday, Takano-san!"  
"I still have to approve it. If it's garbage you'll have to rewrite it, again."  
Ritsu went quite but stayed stiff in his boss's arms. Masamune could feel the waves of irritation radiating from his lover's body. He knew he shouldn't have stirred up Ritsu, but he also couldn't say that he didn't want to see the way Ritsu hunched his shoulders angrily and see the cute passive-aggressive expression of death that only Onodera could pull off. This was a thing that was newer to Older Onodera. Oda Ritsu had two modes, smiling or severely blushy and cute. The skittish and angry Ritsu, Takano had found, was also extremely adorable.

He closed his eyes softly and took in his lover's sweet comforting scent as he pictured Ritsu's adorable blushes and his angry little pouts. They both looked amazing on his thin lips and he could see the emotion flowing all the way up to the sparkling green eyes. Takano remembered those green eyes in all their beauty from all the times he and Ritsu had ever been close enough for their eyes to meet. He could see the little strands of dark green pigment and the tiny gold flecks that were hidden in those eyes. Ritsu's eyes were mesmerizing, to say the least. In all honesty, Ritsu was a beauty that was unmatched in Takano's eyes; with his slender frame and soft cheeks. The way his bangs swept across his face in the wind or how they fell in his face when he was sitting at the computer for too long were breathtaking sights. How could one be attracted to someone this much and still be alive?

The answer was that Ritsu was the center of Takano's life. He didn't know what he would ever do if Ritsu left again. Now that he finally had him back, the thoughts of Ritsu no longer being in his life were almost painful to think on.

"I Always Loved You…" It was as if the heavens had opened and Ritsu's voice poured into the never ending void of the melancholy sadness that had been a distinct part of the past ten years of Takano Masamune's life. His eyes snapped open and his lips paused mid-kiss on Ritsu's collarbone. His Oda, his Onodera, his Ritsu had always loved him. He hadn't ever stopped.

Masamune could've screamed and cried and laughed all at once, but he was frozen in place, locked up in the beautiful warmth Ritsu was providing him and the sweet essence of Ritsu's skin. He gulped and locked his lips on Ritsu's skin once more, sucking a hickey softly alongside Ritsu's collarbone.  
"T-Takano-san?" Ritsu's voice was filled with shock at his action and he felt so tense in Masamune's arms. Relax, my love, I'm here. I'm so happy.  
"I love you too, Ritsu." He mumbled softly in Onodera's ear as he nuzzled his neck, "I always loved you."  
Ritsu's tensed even more in Takano's arms and gave a nervous chuckle, "Uh, Takano-san?"  
"Hmm? What is it my Ritsu?" Masamune was on cloud nine.

Onodera gave another awkward chuckle and held up a paperback book in his hands, showing the cover to Takano. Masamune felt like he had been kicked when he read the words on the cover. I Always Loved You, written by Robin Oliveira. It had been a "joke" gift from a summer fling in his college days. At first, he swore he was going to donate the piece to the library, but it had been one of those rainy nights in his dorm room. He'd been very tipsy, close to being full blown drunk, and he couldn't find anyone to hook up with that looked enough like Oda Ritsu to even pretend it was him. It had been sitting on his desk halfway unwrapped from the thick packing paper that it had been wrapped in. The woman on the cover wore a beautiful green dress on the color and if he pretended hard enough he could pretend that Ritsu was strolling through the Paris streets; Ritsu with his green eyes and brown hair like the main character. He had spent the rest of the night reading the love story of Mary Cassatt (a beautiful artist) and Edgar Degas (an unlikely lover). He read how their love had grown over the years in the after the French Revolution. He could almost pretend that that had been him and Ritsu walking through the beautiful French scenery, slowly falling in love once more.

He hadn't read it since that night, but he could never manage to let himself let go of the book. It had sat on his shelf amongst some of his favorite stories and pieces of literary art.

He couldn't throw away the fantasy that maybe, one day, Ritsu would come back to him and they would grow back together.

Ritsu pulled away from Masamune's arms and turned around to face him, "First of all, I'm not your anything," he was speaking in a slow quiet voice and Takano couldn't deny the small crack he had felt in his heart. He had already been booted off his rather quickly gained high; getting kicked right afterward wasn't something he was happy about at this point, "Second of all, may I borrow this Takano-san?" He held up the beige book in front of Masamune's face, looking curious.

Masamune hunched his shoulders ever so slightly and gave a single nod of agreement, "Anything you'd like to borrow, you can Ritsu." With a small sad smile to himself, he stood and handed Ritsu his cup of coffee that he had made for him as he mumbled something about breakfast getting cold.

His hand had just touched to the doorknob when two smaller arms wrapped around his waist from behind. He paused and glanced over his shoulder. Ritsu was…hugging onto him…hiding his beautiful blushing cheeks into his lean back.  
"I thought you said you weren't leaving," Ritsu mumbled to his lover, squeezing tighter.  
Masamune looked at him in shock and just shook his head, "I'm not. Just checking on –"  
Ritsu's beautiful green eyes lifted from its hiding spot in Takano's back to gaze into his own hazel ones, "I really do, Takano." He mumbled softly, before blushing once more and returning to his hiding spot.  
"Ha?" Masamune turned towards the blushing man and pulled him into his arms. Ritsu's cheeks were getting warmer as he mumbled something to himself.  
He raised a hand to the soft brown locks atop the blushing face and gave it a few soft strokes, "You don't have to –"  
Ritsu looked up at him with a fiery determination, "I love you too." As soon as the words slipped out of his mouth, Ritsu seemed to be gapping like a fish out of water, before turning redder than Takano had ever witnessed. He could feel the soft involuntary jerks of his lover's nerves trying to decide if it was better to hide or to flee.

There was no way in hell Takano would let him flee, however. Not now.

With a wider smile than he had ever given in his life, Takano Masamune hugged his lover tightly against him. That smile only grew bigger as he felt arms wrap around him once more, just as tightly.

 **A/N: (** Hi lovelies! I'm back! I know it's been a bit, but I decided to write a 2nd chapter to this story. I am so excited that it is finally done and I can share it with you. I wanted this chapter to be a bit more fluffy since the last one was filled with angst * **insert the gif of puppet Harry Potter banging his head against the wall** *, so I hope it was something you all enjoyed…or at least appreciated? As always, don't forget to R&R. Love you all. – S.A.M. **)**


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